Source of legend and lyric, reference and conjecture, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland is for most children pure pleasure in prose. While adults try to decipher Lewis Carroll's putative use of complex mathematical codes in the text, or debate his alleged use of opium, young readers simply dive with Alice through the rabbit hole, pursuing "The dream-child moving through a land / Of wonders wild and new." There they encounter the White Rabbit, the Queen of Hearts, the Mock Turtle, and the Mad Hatter, among a multitude of other characters--extinct, fantastical, and commonplace creatures. Alice journeys through this Wonderland, trying to fathom the meaning of her strange experiences. But they turn out to be "curiouser and curiouser," seemingly without moral or sense.

For more than 130 years, children have reveled in the delightfully non-moralistic, non-educational virtues of this classic. In fact, at every turn, Alice's new companions scoff at her traditional education. The Mock Turtle, for example, remarks that he took the "regular course" in school: Reeling, Writhing, and branches of Arithmetic-Ambition, Distraction, Uglification, and Derision. Carroll believed John Tenniel's illustrations were as important as his text. Naturally, Carroll's instincts were good; the masterful drawings are inextricably tied to the well-loved story. (All ages) --Emilie Coulter

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Lewis Carroll's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland has continuously delighted readers, young and old, for more than a century. This classic tale, interpreted by many outstanding artists over the years, is a remarkable story of one little girl who embarks on possibly one of the most amazing adventures in literary history. In this stunning special edition, Helen Oxenbury turns her hand to what is certainly no small project and has succeeded in surpassing expectation. More abundantly illustrated than other editions of the same work, this unabridged version is packed with contemporary and accessible interpretations of the kaleidoscope of characters--the White Rabbit, the Mad Hatter, the Cheshire Cat, the Queen of Hearts--who have each captured the imaginations of generations of children. Alice herself is portrayed as a thoroughly modern miss--casually dressed, personable, and spirited--and her surroundings are brought to effervescent life with a warmth, depth, and distinctive sense of humor that perfectly complement the shenanigans of the topsy-turvy world of Wonderland. (Ages 7 and older) --Susan Harrison, Amazon.co.uk